Method of making spiral auger stems, bits, and substitutes



April 30, 1929 M. J. KEARNS 1,711,231

' METHOD OF MAKING SPIRAL AUGER STEMS, BITS, AND SUBSTITUTES Filed Feb. 1, 1926 s Sheets-Sheet 1 Inventor Q Zea/W0 Attorney April 30, 1929. Ns 1,711,231

METHOD OF MAKING SPIRAL AUGER sums, BITS, AND SUBSTITUTES Filed Feb. 1, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 "'"n. MM w Attorney Inventor I w/Zizm April 30, 1929. J KEARNS 1,711,231

METHOD OF MAKING SPIRAL AUGER STEMS, BITS, AND SUBSTITUTES Filed Feb. 1, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 A u I Inventor v/z y Attorney Patented Apr. 30, 1929.

' unrrsn STATES.

PATENT OFFICE.

MICHAEL 'J. KnARNs, or TIrUsvI L'E, PENNSYLVANIA, AssIGNon, BY MESNE AS- SIGNMEN'IS, TO STRUTHERS WELLS-TITUSVILLE CORPORATION, or TI'rUsvILLE,

PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION MARYLAND.

METHOD or MAKING srinAL AUGER STEMS, izl'rs, AND SUBSTITUTES.

Application filed February The present invention relates to a method of producing spiral auger stems, spiral bits, and spiral substitutes, and aims to expedite and cheapen the production of such tools.

Its object is to provide a simple and 6X.

peditious method of forging tools of this character.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists in first shaping a Steel billet to provide a body substantially square in cross section, secondly shaping the ends of the body to produce cylindrical collars for forming the usual box and pin, then shaping the remaining portion of the body to form a cruciform, thatis to provide it with longitudinally extending wings and then by the use of suitable dies to twist the wings into spiralsand finally to provide the desired tapers adjacent the cylindrical collars. forming the box and pin.

The invention also consists in certain novel of the method hereinafter more fully steps it bedisclosed and pointedout in the claim, ing understood made therein without departing 1 from the spirit or scope of the invention as claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, there has been shown the essential means employed for carrying'out the several steps of the method and the producedarticle has been illustrated in the different stages of production.

In the drawing I V Figure 1 is a front elevation of a pair of dies in the process of shaping a billet during several steps of the method.

Figure 2 is a top plan View of the bottom die with the spaces removed.

Figure 3 is an end elevation of the bottom die.

Figure 4 is an elevation of a billet after the first step of the process.

Figure 5 is an elevation of the billet after the second step of the process.

Figure 6 is a section through the billet shown in Figure 5.

Figure 7 is an elevation of the billet after the third step of the process.

Figure 8 is a section taken transversely through the billet shown in Figure 7. s

Figure 9 is an elevation of the billet after the fourth step of the process.

Figure 10 is a front elevation of a pair of dies used in the twisting step of the process.

that various changes may be 1, 1926. 'Serial No. 85,367.

Figure 11 is an end elevation thereof, and

Figure 12 is an elevation of the finished billet. after the fifth step ofthe process.

In carrying out this method, a billet ofsteel of predetermined size and length,preferably, but not necessarily square is chosen to make the stem, the end of this square is first rounded into shape of suitable sizerequired for box and pin. There is a box on one end of the stem, and a pin on the other as is well known in the art. This first step is accompli shed by a steam hammer or a forging press (I have used successfully a steam hydraulic press). The lower die 5 is made fast to the base or anvil block and the upper die 6 is 'movably mounted, that is it is raised up and lowered down by the steam hammer or forging press in the well known manner. The end of the billet is forged into proper shape, that .is into a cylindrical collar by using the surface indicated at 7 of the die 5 as. an anvil andthesurfaceindicated at 8-of the die6 V as a hammer head. The billet is then moved, being carried by a crane or in any other suitable manner, so as to be put into slot No.

9, it being noted that the billet is diagonally arranged in respect to the horizontal. The

i die 6 is then lowered andthe slots 9 and 10 cause the billet totake the shape shown in Figures 5 and 6 of the drawing, thereby forming wings 11. Thethickness of these wings 11 is gaged by the U-shaped stop :12 on the upper face and adjacent the ends of the die '5:which limit the approach of-the die 6 to-. ward said die 5. These two wings 11 must be made sufficiently thin so. as to enter slots 12 and 13 which are narrower than slots 9 and. 10. When one wing 11 is located in the slot 12 the die 6 is allowed to approach the 'die 5 thereby swaging the billet into the shape shown in Figures 7 and 8, that is forming two rectangularly disposed wings 14 to the wings 11. From Figures 5 and 7 it will be noted. that in the second and third steps of this method care is taken to leave portions adjacent the cylindrical collars 15 untouched as is indicated in Figures 5 and 7 by numeral 0 16, said portion 16 being reserved to form the tapers later on in the method. In both steps 2 and 3 it is to be understood, of course, that the shaping is done intermittently. That is, after one portion of the body of the billet has been shaped, the die 6 is raised-and the billet moved in the die 5 and then the billet 6 moves downwardly again and so forth until the respective step is completed.

The fourth step consists in forming the tapers adjacent the collars 1,5. The portions 16 are placed in the slots 18 which cooperates with the slots 19 of the dies 5 and '6 respectively. The die 6 is then caused to move toward the die 5 for forming the taper shown at 20 in Figure 9. The billet is now ready for the twisting step which is accomplished by using the dies 22 and 23shown in Figures 10 and 11. These dies 22 and 23 are operated by a steam hammer or forging press as set forth in respect to dies 5 and 6. The stem is placed in these twisting dies 22 and 23, and pressure appliedwhich imparts the spiral as shown in Figure 12 which is the finished article. Thistwisting step is of an intermittent nature, that is a portion of the spiral is formed first, and then the stem is moved the width of the'die, or less. The dies operated again and so on until the complete spiral has been finished.

This method is several hundred percent faster than any known method. The advantage of the method-is that with two or more slots 9, 10, 12, 13,-the stem can be completed without reheating or changing dies. In actual practice one slot is not suflicient to produce the desired effect without leaving the core too heavy, hence the reason for the narrow slots 12, 18, the third slot 18, 19 being used exclusively for forming tapers at either end of the spiral. When one half of the stem is completed and is turned around, and the other end heated and forged in the manner already described, two beatings being generally sufficient to complete twenty feet of spiral and three feet ofround'on each end.

With this method, a spiral stem may be forged by passing a'bar of a size suitable to make the-cruciform through slots 9 and 10 of the forging dies 5 and 6 for making the two wings thin enough to enter the center slots 12 and 13. It is to be noted that slots 9 and 10 are about twice as wide as slots 12 and 13, and sufficient steel is retained in the slots 9 and 10 to make the other two wings when the stem is turned ninety degrees and passed through slots 12 and 13 so that all four wings become of equal size, width, and thickness. When the end of the stem is almost reached it is put into slots 18 and 19 which form the taper from the core to the box. and pin, thus giving added strength to these sections. When a section of the stem is finished it may be twisted without reheating by passing the forged section through the twisting dies, or it may be left aside when the cruciform is forged and twisted at any time afterwards. The spiral bit is forged in the same manner. The substitute is forged by drawing or forging down thecenter to the size'required, leaving both ends square of sufficient size and length to make the spirals and box and pin; the square ends are formed in the spirals by following the same rule as employed in the making of spiral'stems, and the ends rounded for box and pins.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is The herein described method of producing spiral auger stems and the like which consists in forming cylindrical collars on the ends of a billet substantially polygonal in cross section, then forming a pair of oppositely disposed wings, beginning at some distance from the collars, then forming a second pair of oppositely disposed wings also beginning at some distance from the collars, said second wings being angularly disposed to the first wings, then forming tapers at the spaces of the billet between the ends of the wings and the collars, then subjecting the wings to pressure to impart spiral formation thereto.

In testimony whereof I afiiX my signature.

MICHAEL J. KEARNS. 

